Optimizing highpoly head for normal mapping ?

snap.crackle.pop

I modeled a medium/highrez head for a normal map.

I would like to know what are good ways to optimize it so i can have a lowpoly out of it ? is there anything that some of you guys do/use to de-rez a head ?

or do you just re-start from scratch and rebuild something around the highrez one.

thanks

snap.crackle.pop

fritz

as far as i know there are multiple ways to go about it. you could use another software option such as polyboost or that retypo-thingy that's floating around. they have tools to draw typology right over your HR. i usually have a pretty OK set of loops and rings. so i just delete loops and rings fast with hotkeys....then look at areas i might need to add a little geo here and there.

snap.crackle.pop

thanks for the reply fritz, but what's that retypo thingy your talking about ?

Rob Galanakis

Topogun.

There is an artist who is on the Autodesk master class CD, about 'next gen faces' or something. He takes a head like that, with slightly more polygons, and just selects every other edgeloop and removes it, and uses that as the low poly... personally I think sculpting, then re-topo is much quicker with much better results... I cringe every time I think about him giving seminars...

I would just select and remove loops, or, like has been stated, re-topo it.

fritz

yes...TOPOGUN is what i was thinking of...thanks professor. and yes, DO NOT do what that sutodesk master class dude does. you must think about which ones to delete. that's kinda sad some dude on a master class CD does that.

here's the topogun site:

http://www.topogun.com/

snap.crackle.pop

thanks to you Fritz and Professor

I think im done now, i used the optimize modifier in 3dsmax, at first it does a massacre of you mesh but i deleted one side and worked from there to clean up the whole thing, im going to use this from now. Worked great.

snap.crackle.pop

Just an other question

Where is the polycounter under 3dsmax ?

i know the "7" button but i never managed to find the real polygon counter box, sorry im a lightwave user.

Slum

Go to the utilities tab (far right), then click the "more" button. from there, choose polygon counter.

MoP

It is in the Utilities tab on the far right, look for Polygon Counter.
Edit: Beaten to the punch AGAIN!

snap.crackle.pop

Don't worry Mop any help is surely always welcome.

Thanks to everyone on this one.

Ok Ninja Edit: i see where you guys are leading me but i see no "polygon counter line" ... is this normal ? im using Max 9

SuperOstrich

Polygon Counter is gone in Max9 as far as I can tell. The best way to get poly stats is to enable them in the viewport. Right-click your viewport name in the upper-left and go to Configure/Statistics. Set the items you want and click on "Show Statistics in Active View."

fritz

i may be wrong on this one...but don't you have to download it as an extension like probooleans? i could be wrong. but that was my first thought.

haha. sorry, i thought you said polycruncher. disregard.

snap.crackle.pop

Thanks SuperOstrich, but tell me why would Autodesk remove their polycounter ? this is a good tool, and if it worked well why would they ditch it ?

rooster

with high poly objects using polycounter actually slowed things down. its not gone really just integrated into the viewport info